So it goes with saying that only things I own with any connection to MARVEL I bought on Ebay or Etsy. MARVEL COMICS & MARVEL CINEMATIC UNIVERSE are their own creatures and I have nothing to do with either of them aside from the fact I enjoy reading or watching them, and am grateful for the ability to play in their world. I claim nothing, and I receive nothing for this, expect the pleasure of putting something out into the world.
You can also find this story on ARCHIVE OF OUR OWN under the same title and pen name along with a place to post suggestions.
Don't forget to check out the Photobucket album listed on my profile page too.
DAY TWO
CHAPTER FIFTEEN
WEDNESDAY, MAY 2ND 2012
1447 HOURS
SUBTERRANEAN BUNKER
LOCATION UNKNOWN
LOKI
I am not sure which is worse: what my youthful stupidity, and Asgard's idle support of the All-Father's unnecessarily cruel judgment did to her; what a groups grandiose intentions and a man who has the luck of no longer existing and thereby escape my wrath for what they did to her; or what S.H.I.E.L.D would still be doing to her if they had half a chance.
I had sought out Agent Barton, to discuss what steps would be necessary to advance my cause, and cease this distasteful burrowing existence I find myself enduring. I must say that after hearing him speak his mind, despite the fact he had the misfortune of being born into the inferior shell of a mortal body, his input was rather creative and really leaves me wondering how he ever managed to keep up the persona of being a good man.
Those thoughts had to have come from somewhere after all.
Certainly his suggestions of what he thought we should do to one Dr Heinrich Schafer were quite morbid, but I think they will work wonderfully to accomplish what I desire. It does not take much to create chaos if you properly execute the display.
It will definitely hold their attention and at the very least I can extract a little vengeance on that name, sadly though the original carrier is long since dead and free of my retribution for his part in her suffering.
After I was done speaking to Agent Barton I decided to speak to my other servant. Slave would perhaps seem the more appropriate term, but the scepter does truthfully not deprive them of their own will so much as sway it to my service.
He told me in unexpectedly great detail what S.H.I.E.L.D did to her while she was in their possession, and what they had been done to her before. Had this new information not made me realize just how much I could use him I might have executed him right there just for speaking those words.
They have been putting poison in her veins! They have been giving her frequent injections of a compound designed to trigger apoptosis in its infected cells! A technique they apparently borrowed from Them. They have been tricking her body into quickening the rate which her cells die so they could keep her weak. It is no wonder she thinks herself human, they reduced her to that point!
I do not know if I should be grateful or furious that they calculated her dosage so precisely that they only caused minor cellular atrophy. While I am glad she still has all her limbs and muscle control the truth is the mortals would have had to experiment on her with different amounts to find the right one; they put her life at risk just to make her controllable!
Even more infuriating still is the fact that she does not seem to know this so she thinks that they are more her allies than I am!
If it were not for the fact I am now hold her sleeping in my lap I would likely see no reason not to give in to my urges and put a hole in this wall beside me.
I came back to the room more upset then when I had left which was arguably not the best of ideas, but I am very glad I did. I found her unconscious, caught up in a feverish sweat, with the little creature now awake and cradled near her face as it meowed with concern and tried to rouse her by licking her cheek.
She over-medicated herself to escape what she must find an unpleasant reality, that was clear enough given that even unconsciousness did not make her release the bottle of pills in her grasp.
I had clearly miscalculated. I accounted for the fact that when I told her the truth it would be a bit traumatic for her but I did not think though that she would retreat from it so quickly. I expected her to handle it a little better, to be a bit stronger despite the show of fear I have received so far.
I judged her on the standard of strength I recalled from the last time I rested my eyes on her.
That was unfair and foolish of me to do. Who would not seem strong when they faced their foes with fury and righteous reason behind them?
I wasted no time in checking on her when I saw the state she was in, sending the guard I appointed to summon the doctors while I checked her pulse and breathing personally, finding myself surprised and distressed by the fact she did not seem to register my touch.
Now though, she rests peacefully enough and I am no longer so concerned. The doctor told me she is in no real danger. The side effects of the medication we have given her for the pain account for her slumber and sweat. She may have taken much more than she should, but not nearly enough to threaten her life.
Even the little beast she keeps with such affection seems relieved. It showed quite a bit of bravery and stupidity when I approached its mistress. It hissed a warning at me, determined, despite its obvious injuries or because of them, to defend her from all of those with ill intentions.
Now that it has realizes that I too want to help return his mistress to health it has warmed up to me considerably. Idly licking at my fingers when I offer them to it, and purring softly under my caress from where it rests on her chest, waiting longingly for her to open her eyes again.
It is a loyal little creature to be sure, but then, I cannot recall a time when an animal was not naturally inclined to be affectionate toward her. That quality in her actually served my purposes rather well once.
Those thoughts of the past bring a bit of a rueful smile to my lips as I dip the damp cloth back in the bowl of water, and let my skin cool it, before returning to the task of overcoming this fever in her flesh.
I do have so much to make up for.
WEDNESDAY, MAY 2ND 2012
1544 HOURS
NETAJI SUBHASH CHANDRA BOSE INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT
KOLKATA, INDIA
NATASHA
When Coulson gave me access to the knowledge I wanted I also got access to the knowledge I needed, mainly why the Director would send me to retrieve one of the only men on the planet I am admittedly afraid of, knowing full well that I fear no man.
The loose the Tesseract to enemy hands.
The COMPLETE destruction of the P.E.G.A.S.U.S base.
The loss of our lead scientist on the subject, and Clint.
A body count of 63, with 29 being non U.S citizens on loan for other countries, and an indeterminate amount of additional dead that are either body parts or ash piles.
The need for the uninjured to be quarantined and undergo a full psychological exam, and radiation testing to make sure they aren't secretly acting as a Double Agent for the Terrorist, and haven't suffered gamma exposure before returning to active duty.
And a set of wanted posters, one of them with her face on it.
That last part I got rather hung up on for a while. I knew I would find one with Clint's face on it, but I wasn't completely prepared to find one for her too.
Nora has never been anything but loyal to S.H.I.E.L.D, we gave her, or guilted her into every reason to be. The idea that we might now raise our weapons against her, I can't imagine what that would do to her and she wouldn't even understand why.
I helped with that ignorance, which was why after I finished reading what S.H.I.E.L.D knew, I started trying to find information of my own. I ran what facial searches I could with the device in my hand, and started looking for anything that matched habits I knew Clint had, unlikely as that success may be. I couldn't sit idly for the six-hour flight, not while the people that mattered to me were out there and in danger.
But then the plane landed and I had to shut that side of me off for the time being. I couldn't multitask this mission, I knew that much about myself.
To bring in the host of the Hulk demanded my complete focus, because if I didn't do this perfectly I wasn't going to have feet left to walk out of Kolkata.
That means I need to make the situation very clear to the unfortunate men we chose for this mission, chosen only because they were already in the area of the target, even if their skill set came into the decision-making process. We aren't going after a man. Were going after a monster of war.
But then the plane landed and I had to shut that side of me off for the time being. I couldn't multitask this mission, I knew that much about myself.
To bring in the host of the Hulk demanded my complete focus, because I might be walking in but if I didn't do this perfectly I wasn't going to have the feet left to walk out of Kolkata.
That means I need to make the situation very clear to the unfortunate men we chose for this mission, chosen only because they were already in the vicinity of the target, even if their skill set came into the decision-making process. We aren't going after a man. Were going after a monster of war.
NOTES FOR THE READERS:
Apoptosis, for anyone who may not have caught it, is one of the first steps in atrophy. it is when your cells release the chemical signal that triggers cellular death, so in short they have been shortening the lifespan of her cells.
Netaji Subhash Chandra Bose International Airport is a real airport in the vicinity of Kolkata India. I imagine given the urgency of the situation the would want to drop Natasha off is close to Doctor Banner is possible, and given the urgency they would call only an available forces already in the area first is back up for this mission.
The last line in this chapter, "We aren't going after a man. Were going after a monster of war." is a direct reference to the FURYS BIG WEEK comics, where Natasha tells Director Fury "These are gods and monsters and machines of war we're mixed up with."